Refresh local tourism sector with ASEAN tie-ups

As the Singapore Tourism Board celebrates 50 years of tourism development and promotion this year, we should be reminded that our tourism industry is entering a mid-life crisis of sorts.

As the Prime Minister emphasised during the official opening of the River Safari, the industry must refresh itself and reposition its branding and offerings (“PM stresses need for tourist attractions to stay fresh”; March 1).

A large part of the industry’s branding and most of its offerings come from our tourist attractions, such as the Singapore Zoo and the various retail outlets in Orchard Road.

In recent years, our emphasis has shifted to sporting events, such as the Youth Olympic Games, Formula One and the Women’s Tennis Association Championships taking place this year.

The Football Association of Singapore is even planning to host the Youth World Cup.

However, there is a limit to the number of sporting highlights we can host, as many countries are vying for major sporting events, and to the number of tourists we can attract by hosting these games.

Gone are the days when tourists’ main aims were to travel, shop and enjoy themselves.

Nowadays, they want to experience the local culture, atmosphere and history that they cannot experience in their home countries.

As a small nation, Singapore is limited in the heartland experience it can offer.

We lack the natural scenery neighbouring countries have. Sooner or later, Singapore will find it hard to promote itself as a single entity in the fight for the tourism pie.

The way forward is to collaborate with other countries in the region to offer an “ASEAN experience” as part of a tourism package.

For instance, Singapore and Malaysia are close neighbours, and both countries could offer a “Causeway experience”, so tourists can learn about our shared past by visiting attractions that hold a significant meaning in our common history.

Another idea would be to package ASEAN as a whole and attract tourists to visit various countries in one go.

This could have an economic impact and help the ASEAN countries move forward and grow together as one.

Tourism has come a long way in Singapore, but we cannot stay stagnant if we want many happy anniversaries for the industry in future.